Whats with all the wings?

Starting to think ANET poached some members of the AION art department.

I can think of a couple of reasons.1 - They sell well. Lots of people really love putting wings on their characters, be it jokingly, icly, or just to make the character look cool to them.2 - They are a natural idea for a back item that lets you glide.

Wings keep selling, so they keep making more wings!

Wings are great! The gliders they are usually bundled with are really cool too.

We need interesting backpacks like Warbringer, not weird wings that come in different shades

As above - players keep buying them so Anet makes and sells more of them.

I've got a few myself. I got the black feather wings for my Raven shaman norn character (was a revenant, now a necromancer) and because at the time I didn't have any dark coloured or fully dyable gliders so it was an option for characters who don't use bright colours.

And I got the bat wings because years ago I made a character for a free-form role-playing forum who was basically my main RPG character with bat wings, cat ears and a tail (there is a story behind that but it's long and weird and involves 3 realities and the gods of evolution so I won't get into it now). I kept using the RPG character right up to GW2 (and beyond) and could not resist the chance to make her look like her alter-ego, something which hadn't been possible in a game since City of Heroes. Also they look good on my charr and for halloween.

I also got the phoenix glider for my elementalist, which is like wings but without the backpack.

If I played my gold and orange themed warrior more I'd get the gold feather wings for him, and I'm always tempted to buy the Branded wings because black and purple are my favourite colours and my main characters colour scheme. I like the Macaw Wings and Moth Wings too but don't have character concepts which fit them. (Plus I've banned myself from making more permanent characters - I don't have time for all the ones I have now.)

@Blocki.4931 said:Wings are great!

Total kitsch to me.

@"Lpfan.3578" said:Wings keep selling, so they keep making more wings!

"More"? What did I miss, are there any new ones?

@Ashantara.8731 said:

@Blocki.4931 said:Wings are great!

@"Lpfan.3578" said:Wings keep selling, so they keep making more wings!

A new set has been data-mined and can be previewed in game, but is not yet available. They're called Scaled Dragon Wings and the preview code is [&AgGgWwEAAA==]

(They look like the bat wings but black and more closely folded, like the branded wings are.)

Someone's been drinking the red bull. ?

Granted, I find them tacky as heck - like a weak fancy dress party.

But hey. Flap 'em if you got 'em!

I recall once having no use for wings, but they have grown on me.

I use them as my glider option like it alot.

First thought this thread was asking about the raid wings =)

@Turkeyspit.3965 said:Starting to think ANET poached some members of the AION art department.

Not really 'poaching' when they are both owned by NCSoft, it's called 'relocation', or 'sharing is caring' :lol:

I hate them too. I just think its silly walking around with wide open wings on your back. Sure you can glide, but still, it looks off to me.

Artistic integrity of a game only matters with things that don't make them money or when they need an excuse not to add something.

I have to wonder what people would think if I walked around town with a pair of rainbow coloured fairy wings strapped to my back. That being said, I don't think immersion is on the forefront of many people's minds - and a prudish outlook in this day and age only makes you look like a kitten.

I mean, most people who have wings usually dress the part, so I just dismiss it as a weird fashion trend.

@Westenev.5289 said:I have to wonder what people would think if I walked around town with a pair of rainbow coloured fairy wings strapped to my back.

Well comparing a fantasy game to real life street wear is a bit weird to be honest. I'm sure if I would wear heavy armor without rainbows or flashy stuff people would have their thoughts about it too.

I think it makes more sense to walk around with wings in GW2 than the GW2 t-shirt that some people have. Now that makes sense in real life to wear but in a fantasy game that's just bizarre. Of course Aion, which has been mentioned before already started this crap where people can actually buy current day clothing like tuxedo's and snorkels. I for one don't get that people want to wear contemporary clothes in a fantasy game.

Having said that, I have a couple of characters that have wings as backpack but I never have my backpacks ticked cause cause they have all kinds of clipping issues with weapons and hair and such. And as an aesthetic, it only really works for me as glider. But walking around with wings is definitely more fantasy than t-shirts.

@"Westenev.5289" said:I have to wonder what people would think if I walked around town with a pair of rainbow coloured fairy wings strapped to my back. That being said, I don't think immersion is on the forefront of many people's minds - and a prudish outlook in this day and age only makes you look like a kitten.

I mean, most people who have wings usually dress the part, so I just dismiss it as a weird fashion trend.

I'd say it depends on the town and the day. In some places it might draw attention, in others I doubt anyone would think twice. Any student town for example you'll see people wearing all kinds of things.

Someone walked around my office all day wearing fox ears and a tail and apparently just 3 people asked her about it. She told them she was testing them out ahead of the Walk For Wildlife in London and everyone accepted that explanation. But then I do work in a fairly unusual office, and HR have literally laughed at the idea of a dress code beyond "well hopefully you'd wear something, I mean...shorts and a top at least".

But I think in real life a lot of ideas of what's conventional clothing come down to what's practical as much as anything. Yes fashion can get absurd even in everyday situations (if in doubt ask any woman about pockets in dresses) but I think the main reason most people don't wear wings most of the time is because they're annoying - they get in the way and make it harder to go through doors or sit down and that ruins the fun of wearing them. (And I say that as someone who owns 2 pairs of fake wings - one bat, one fairy - and has worn them when it wasn't Halloween.)

I enjoy the wings I have, I don't use them on all my characters because they don't fit all my characters. Nothing wrong with wings.

I like wings, they suit some of my characters.But I really wish they would go back and update the older wings with the flapping animation introduced with the Crystal ones.

well back in the day my Guildwars characters had asmo wings because there was an emote we could get if we pre-ordered Aion.
Wasn't going to get'em, but my necro with her dragon horns looks hawt with the crystal ones.My 8 year old was totes amazed.

@Turkeyspit.3965 said:Starting to think ANET poached some members of the AION art department.

i hope i can get my aion promo wings in GW2, they are lovely but kinda useless as a small emote.

The only wings I got is the ones that don't look like wings. More like levitation auras. Wings make me cringe and it kills Muh Immerhsjon.